| urbanleg April 04 2012 00:15. Posts 13 | Profile # |
Hey guys,
I just graduated in computer science,
i started to look for a cool place to work at,
been so far in 2 interviews, and i got the feeling i blew them at the HR part when i answered this question:
1) i prefer to study alone (failed - not a team player)
2) im stressed out easily (failed - that might be a problem)
any ideas of good "bad" qualities for the next interview i got tomorrow?
p.s - perfectionist won't do since its too obvious these days.
thanks
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| BlueBoxSC United States. April 04 2012 00:18. Posts 536 | Profile Blog # |
I don't know, try turning the question around into something that reflects how great of a team player you are.
Like...
"Yes, like everyone, I feel that I have a few unfavorable qualities, but in the professional workplace, I feel like I can put them aside for the sake of the company and I will hopefully be in an environment where my coworkers can support me just as I will support them." |
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| Recognizable Netherlands. April 04 2012 00:19. Posts 1358 | Profile Blog # |
| I know many people who prefer to study alone, however that does not make them any less capable of working together with other people. Maybe this should go to blogs? Or you should turn it into a general job interview thread. |
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| LaSt)ChAnCe United States. April 04 2012 00:19. Posts 2099 | Profile Blog # |
you need to give them something that is a weakness but doesn't affect your ability to perform or be a team player
a common example is "my biggest weakness is that my professional network in the area is small" for example if you just moved to the city, or haven't moved there yet
On April 04 2012 00:18 BlueBoxSC wrote:
I don't know, try turning the question around into something that reflects how great of a team player you are.
Like...
"Yes, like everyone, I feel that I have a few unfavorable qualities, but in the professional workplace, I feel like I can put them aside for the sake of the company and I will hopefully be in an environment where my coworkers can support me just as I will support them."
don't do this, people hate when you avoid answering their questionLast edit: 2012-04-04 00:19:53 |
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 Xann United States. April 04 2012 00:19. Posts 17 | Profile # |
dunno
User was warned for this post |
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| paralleluniverse Australia. April 04 2012 00:20. Posts 2964 | Profile # |
Studying in a group in counterproductive. You will study far more effectively alone.
Also, the greatest weakness question is very phoney in the sense that if everyone gave an honest answer then everyone will fail, i.e. in order to pass the question one has to invent an untrue, or half-true answer. For this reason it is a stupid and pointless question for an interviewer to ask.
I suggest you give a generic answer as prescribed by one of the hundreds of interview help guides on the internet.Last edit: 2012-04-04 00:20:46 |
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| Dujek United Kingdom. April 04 2012 00:20. Posts 276 | Profile Blog # |
You could say,
"I'm not aware of any bad qualities I might have because whenever I discover a problem I work at fixing it quickly."
or something to that effect. |
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| zul Germany. April 04 2012 00:20. Posts 4052 | Profile Blog # |
| I would choose a bad quality that isn`t a dealbreaker for the actual job you are doing and try to stay honest. for example as a programer, you could say your weakness is the lack of acurate expressions in smalltalks and therefore you sometimes are missunderstood. |
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| Diader United States. April 04 2012 00:21. Posts 208 | Profile Blog # |
| What I've heard is that you want to mention something that has to do with inexperience, rather than a character flaw, and show how you've begun trying to overcome it on your own already. |
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| msl Germany. April 04 2012 00:21. Posts 230 | Profile # |
My biggest weakness is my inability to answer questions like this with a straight face.
(I actually said something like this once and got the job) |
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| Keitzer United States. April 04 2012 00:22. Posts 2505 | Profile Blog # |
Wait... are you asking for a lie to tell?
Or are you asking for advice on how to cover for you flaws?
Because obviously it's a plus to be able to work in a team, but if you can't do it, and really want the job, then I guess the only thing left to do is lie about it.
Edit: er... maybe LIE isn't the right word... maybe... extend the truth .. like... say you PREFER to work alone, although you are able to work in a team (implying you can do both, but you've also stated your preferences)Last edit: 2012-04-04 00:23:38 |
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| justL April 04 2012 00:23. Posts 3 | Profile # |
"i look to good in a suit and it distracts the other employees"
"everytime i pick up a calculator i have to punch in '58008'.. "
"i eat my cereal too fast in the morning and i sometimes i get gassy" |
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| urbanleg April 04 2012 00:23. Posts 13 | Profile # |
On April 04 2012 00:21 msl wrote:
My biggest weakness is my inability to answer questions like this with a straight face.
(I actually said something like this once and got the job)
mind = blown
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| paralleluniverse Australia. April 04 2012 00:23. Posts 2964 | Profile # |
All of these suggested answers are quite sensible and good enough.
Although they are all phoney.
They are also mostly unverifiable, so in that sense your ass is covered. |
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| pirsq Australia. April 04 2012 00:24. Posts 144 | Profile Blog # |
| I wouldn't want to work anywhere that would ask me a question that doesn't say anything useful about myself, and basically just tests my ability to regurgitate a rehearsed answer. |
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| revel8 United Kingdom. April 04 2012 00:25. Posts 2710 | Profile # |
If you have just graduated, just mention the fact that you are inexperienced in the workplace as something that is a possible negative. They will already know that you are inexperienced due to your CV, so you are not really throwing yourself under the bus. Mention consequences of this inexperience such as a current lack of proffessional contacts in your industry and that you are still lacking mentors at this point in your career. None of those are really 'a bad quality' but I think the above will allow you to dodge that without incriminating yourself.
You can also say that you sometimes have a tendency to worry too much that the skills you learn will become obsolete, and this drives you to focus on constantly learning new skills. Basically most people in the IT industry share this fear, so it will be accepted without much further scrutiny. Last edit: 2012-04-04 00:28:07 |
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| urbanleg April 04 2012 00:25. Posts 13 | Profile # |
On April 04 2012 00:24 pirsq wrote:
I wouldn't want to work anywhere that would ask me a question that doesn't say anything useful about myself, and basically just tests my ability to regurgitate a rehearsed answer.
gotcha, altough this question is being asked 99% of the time (at least in software development interviews) |
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| Pandemona England. April 04 2012 00:26. Posts 9644 | Profile Blog # |
Never answer "truthfully" answer what they want to hear is rule 1. Everyone feels pressure, everyone gets stressed, everyone prefers to do work themselves if possible rather than relying on someone else. But thats not what employers want. When i was 16 however i blew a similar awesome job as a BMW parts apprentice, learning how to become a future BMW parts seller to customers cars that are needed to be fixed. I blew it when they asked, what do you want to do in your life. I said i wanted to be a footballing coach and would get my coaching badges whilst working my way up and dreamt of managing a football team. (Wow how young and naive i was!) so it kind of went downhill after that one, but out of 300 applications it was down to me and 2 others so i was rather proud.
But yeah back to your point, you need to "bend the truth" and turn yourself into the perfect applicant, think what they want to hear and say that and back it up with other points and examples where and how you have been a team player and where you have not gotten stressed etc.
Good Quality - I am a hard working and conscientious person
Bad Quality - I tend to strive for to much perfection on any task given to me.Last edit: 2012-04-04 00:27:52 |
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| paralleluniverse Australia. April 04 2012 00:26. Posts 2964 | Profile # |
On April 04 2012 00:22 Keitzer wrote:
Wait... are you asking for a lie to tell?
Or are you asking for advice on how to cover for you flaws?
Because obviously it's a plus to be able to work in a team, but if you can't do it, and really want the job, then I guess the only thing left to do is lie about it.
Edit: er... maybe LIE isn't the right word... maybe... extend the truth .. like... say you PREFER to work alone, although you are able to work in a team (implying you can do both, but you've also stated your preferences)
You speak as if "working in a team" is impossible for someone who studies alone.
Or that "working in a team" is a hard thing to do, and a rare quality amongst the general population.
A buffoon can work in a team.
I've never met or known anyone who cannot work in a team.Last edit: 2012-04-04 00:26:21 |
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| ErrantMind United States. April 04 2012 00:26. Posts 63 | Profile # |
| try admitting a fault, but including how you deal with it. for me, i can become overwhelmed if important expected to make progress on many projects at once, but I've learned to prioritize and take things step by step instead of just boggling at a high workload. |
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